Contributions
194 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDEuropean Union (Withdrawal Agreement) BillMy Lords, it has been a very good debate, not least because this is the first time in decades that we have heard in this Chamber from both nationalist and unionist representatives…20 Jan 2020HANSARDNorthern Ireland Executive FormationThis is a great and considerable achievement, and I place on record the Opposition’s congratulations, in particular to the Secretary of State, Julian Smith, who has done a…16 Jan 2020HANSARDEuropean Union (Withdrawal Agreement) BillMy Lords, I endorse the remarks of my noble friend Lord Griffiths and the noble Baroness, Lady Randerson, on Amendment 29. Your Lordships will recall that it is nearly 23 years…15 Jan 2020HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019: Section 3(5)My Lords, the hour is late—perhaps too late to be discussing these grave and weighty matters. Like the noble Lord, Lord Bruce, I hope that next week the Minister will be at that…07 Jan 2020HANSARDNorthern Ireland Budget BillMy Lords, obviously, the Opposition will support the Bill, albeit reluctantly, because we know why it is in front of us and why it is being dealt with so swiftly. I regret that we…31 Oct 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Extension of Period for Executive Formation) (No. 2) Regulations 2019My Lords, we, of course, support this statutory instrument and, again, we support it reluctantly. This is the fourth occasion this week that Northern Ireland business has been…31 Oct 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland Budget BillThe Opposition is entirely behind my noble friend on this, but could the Minister look at the point that he made about the wash-up? As long as we pass the Bill later and First…31 Oct 2019HANSARDHistorical Institutional Abuse (Northern Ireland) Bill [HL]My Lords, I associate myself with my noble friend Lord Hain and indicate that the Opposition entirely agree with the Government on this Bill. It was, after all, a government…31 Oct 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019: Section 3(5)My Lords, I hope we can go on, but it is a rather gloomy situation. The noble Lord, Lord Alderdice, referred to stamina. When he and I first met to deal with these issues, I was…28 Oct 2019HANSARDHistorical Institutional Abuse (Northern Ireland) Bill [HL]My Lords, just under 20 years ago it fell upon me as the then Secretary of State for Wales to make a Statement in the other place on the north Wales child abuse inquiry, which had…28 Oct 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019: Section 3(5)More is the pity—of course a Speaker should be elected. We should have an Assembly and an Executive up and running in Belfast, but I agree with the noble Lord, Lord Alderdice,…17 Oct 2019HANSARDIrish Border: Checks and Customs ArrangementsMy Lords, if there is an ounce of truth in the reports today that the Government’s technical non-paper, or indeed a real paper, dealing with the Irish border is suggesting…01 Oct 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Ministerial Appointment Functions) (No. 2) Regulations 2019My Lords, this is a short debate and an important one. The Opposition will support the Government on the regulations, for obvious reasons, because appointments in Northern Ireland…09 Sept 2019HANSARDTrade UnionsIt is always a great pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Lane-Fox, who made a wonderfully relevant and important contribution to this debate—as did my noble friend Lord…18 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillAs indeed does the Labour Party. I understand the rationale behind the amendments. We are in the holiday season—marching season. There is no Prime Minister, there could well be a…15 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI understand that point. Of course the city of Derry would be enhanced by a larger university presence. There are two very fine universities in Northern Ireland—Queen’s…15 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillThere is something which is right about the amendments tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Bruce: the whole of the United Kingdom should have similar regulations regarding transparency…15 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillThat is because we are not dealing with Brexit at the moment, but with Northern Ireland. Had we resolved the Northern Ireland situation over the past two years, we would possibly…15 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI support the proposals of the noble Lord, Lord Empey. They are extremely sensible, so who would not? The noble Lord has raised this on a number of occasions; in a way it is a cri…15 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillIt would not be for me or anyone else in the House to determine that. It would be a matter for the Ministers responsible for higher education and health to determine. Of course,…15 Jul 2019